AM calls for maximum effort on rail modernisation

North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood has called for the Welsh Government’s North Wales Transport Taskforce to work with the North Wales Ambitions Board to maximise rail modernisation in the region.

 

Mr Isherwood raised the matter with the Finance Minister Jane Hutt.

 

Speaking in the Chamber, he said: “The North Wales Ambition Board has appointed a Connectivity Project Manager, based in Denbighshire County Council, but working across the six north Wales counties, looking primarily at rail modernisation across North Wales from Crewe to Holyhead.

 

“How will you ensure that the task force appointed by the Welsh Government, looking at north Wales transport and chaired by a colleague who is sitting to your right at the moment, will liaise with the North Wales Ambition Board in order to maximise the potential for that capital investment in that rail connectivity across north Wales to Anglesey?”

 

The Minister replied: “It is critical that this is a joined-up Government approach to the North Wales Ambition Board, particularly in relation to transport links.”  

Rats found at the Maelor

The Daily Post is reporting today that rats have been found at Wrexham Maelor Hospital.

See the full story at: http://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/rats-found-wrexham-maelor-hospital-7143382

Euro Elections - how the voting works

When voters go to the polls this Thursday (May 22) they will be asked to cast a vote to elect four Members of the European Parliament to represent the whole of Wales.

Voters will only have one vote to cast and there will be 11 registered parties listed on the ballot paper.

The candidates will be elected by proportional representation so voters will not vote for individual candidates.

Voters are reminded to take their poll card with them to their designated polling station (which is printed on the card) and hand it to the Presiding Officer or one of the Poll Clerks on duty.

Even if a voter has mislaid the poll card, he or she will still be entitled to vote providing they are registered.

A voting mark should be in the form of a cross placed in the box adjacent to the party they wish to vote for. Voters should then place the marked paper in the ballot box.

Polling stations will be open from 7 am until 10 pm.

Each of the 22 local authority areas in Wales will conduct their own counts on Sunday, 25^th May. This is because voting in parts of mainland Europe takes place on that day.

When they have completed their counts, Local Returning Officers will inform the Regional Returning Officer for Wales, Bryn Parry-Jones, of the result of the count in their area.

The result for the Wales electoral region will then be declared by Mr Parry-Jones on Sunday evening at Fishguard Leisure Centre.

Local results cannot be announced before 10 pm as this is the time that polls close in some parts of Europe.

* For more information, go to the website: www.aboutmyvote.co.uk and also  www.denbighshire.gov.uk or you can join the debate on Twitter using hash tag #EPE14.

Appeal after sexual assault

Police are investigating a sexual assault which occurred overnight between 10pm on Friday, May 16 and 2am Saturday, May 17, in the Rhosllanerchrugog area near Wrexham.

 

The victim, a woman in her 20’s, accepted a lift from a passing vehicle on Market Street in Rhos which had two male occupants. It is believed that the victim was then assaulted.

 

Officers are keen to speak to anyone who saw a vehicle in suspicious circumstances either in Rhos, on rural roads or at secluded locations between Rhos and Bangor on Dee during this time.

 

Detective Inspector Jon Jones said: “We are appealing to anyone with information regarding the incident to contact us. We are especially keen to speak to anyone who may have seen a vehicle acting suspiciously in the Rhos area, a woman getting into a vehicle in Rhos or anyone who saw a vehicle parked in an unusual location for that time of night in the rural area around the B5426 Bangor Road between Rhos and Bangor on Dee.”

 

DI Jones added: “Equally, I would ask anyone who has any information that could assist us with the investigation to contact us on 101 quoting reference number R072918 or anonymously via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

KLS says "hang fire on cottage hospital's future"

* The traffic "pinch point" on the A539 approach to town.

A COMMUNITY group has asked Denbighshire County Council to hang fire on deciding the future of Llangollen’s former cottage hospital until the town’s planned new health centre is opened.

Martin Crumpton, chair of Keep Llangollen Special (KLS) recently wrote to Denbighshire planning chiefs voicing his organisation’s concern that should the cottage hospital be redeveloped while the proposed health centre fails to materialise, Llangollen would be “permanently and irrevocably be left with nothing, just the GP surgery which for years has been chronically short of space for its 9,000 registered patients.”

He also outlined KLS’s concerns about pedestrian access to the new health centre, planned for the site of the derelict River Lodge, off the A539.

He received a reply from Iolo McGregor, Corporate Improvement Officer, Business Improvement & Modernisation, which said: “In order to improve the pedestrian route to the proposed health centre, we have identified a couple of locations where pedestrians will be able to cross the road in order to avoid the section of Mill Street with no pavement.

“Each crossing point will consist of dropped kerbs, tactile paving and a ‘build-out’. A build-out is where the road is narrowed on one side by extending the pavement out to the centre line of the road thereby halving the distance that pedestrians will need to cross.

“Build-outs also force traffic from one direction to give way, thereby also creating a traffic calming effect, which will reduce speeds and thus further improve pedestrian safety.

“Additionally, should users not wish to walk, during the times when the new facility will be dealing with patients, there are currently four buses an hour operating between Llangollen town centre and the hospital site. Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board has agreed to provide shelters for passengers using the bus.”

Mr Crumpton was told by the planners that the future of the cottage hospital and the possibility of the health centre failing to go ahead were matters for the health board and not the county council.  

He has now written back to the council, saying: “The public consultation for planning application 03/2014/0472 (demolition of the cottage hospital) ends soon – June 3 - and we’ve only just been informed of the measures proposed to make access to the planned health centre build along Mill Street safe.

“Our evaluation of those measures casts doubt on the viability of the new primary health centre which, in turn, makes the need to retain the cottage hospital important and urgent, if not imperative.  

“We ask you to withhold the Decision Notice on PA 03/2014/0472 until the new health centre has been completed.

“If, having evaluated our concerns, your intention is to permit the redevelopment of the Riverside Lodge then we ask for a sensible, precautionary compromise - construct the traffic-calming measures first or at least simulate them with cones and temporary lights.

“This approach has the virtue of finding if a different approach is needed, or even if there is another solution.

“That stretch has been identified as unsafe and if our fears turn out to be unfounded they would have to have been constructed anyway, so there’s no additional cost involved.

“If the measures fail and have to be removed then the costs will only run into thousands rather than the millions at risk in building a health centre which patients can’t reach safely.”

The planning application for the old cottage hospital calls for redevelopment of the site by way of the demolition of existing buildings and the erection of six social housing units with associated access and parking provision.

KLS has a number of concerns about pedestrian access to the new health centre site, including:

·         Night-time visibility of the build-outs.

·         18-wheelers, emergency services and tourist coaches being unable to drive through a narrowed carriageway.

·         Deliveries of locomotives by wide flat-loader to Llangollen Railway becoming “impossible”. It says the railway shares this concern.

·         The proximity of Wern Road, the new pedestrian crossing and the northern end of Castle Street at the bridge to t.he beginning of the pinch-point on Mill Street means it would take no more than six queuing cars to gridlock Llangollen and might lead to the A5 also being blocked, fears KLS.

New team is turning tide of rural crime

* Police and Crime Commissioner for North Wales, Winston Roddick,

with Sergeant Rob Taylor.

A special police taskforce is turning the tide of rural crime in North Wales - and "setting a benchmark" for the UK.

The dedicated team was set up six months ago by North Wales Police at the request of Police and Crime Commissioner Winston Roddick and it has seen a dramatic reduction in the number of countryside offences.

These include such diverse offences as livestock rustling, theft of farm machinery, badger digging and stealing rare birds eggs.

Since the North Wales Police Rural Crime Team was introduced the number of rural incidents has been recorded on a daily basis.

After peaking in October at 116, they have been dropping steadily with 72 in January, a fall of nearly 40 per cent.

Winston Roddick said: “During my campaign for the post of Police and Crime Commissioner I visited livestock markets and met farmers and members of the rural communities and without exception they pointed to how much crime was taking place in the countryside.

“These offences ran into millions of pounds and this reinforced the view expressed to me that we should dedicate more resources to combating rural crime.

“Even though the countryside is sparsely populated it contributes an enormous amount to the Welsh economy so it is entitled to effective policing and when I took that to the Chief Constable it was accepted immediately and acted upon immediately.

"Since then the Rural Crime Team has made an excellent start and they are setting a benchmark for the rest of the UK. Their work is attracting a great deal of interest from other forces.”

The team is headed by Sergeant Rob Taylor who has four full-time police constables distributed across North Wales and they are supported by a network of PCSOs and special constables.

Natural Resources Wales are partnering North Wales Police in the venture and it has been warmly welcomed by the rural community including the farming unions.

Sergeant Taylor said: “There wasn’t a dedicated crime team for the countryside although many years ago there used to be a farm liaison officer and a lot of farmers told me they regretted the loss of the position.

“But now we have a task force and the results speak for themselves and we have had very positive feedback nationally so that we are seen as a benchmark of best practice and have had other forces from England and Wales showing interest in what we do.

“We have a number of offences being dealt with by the courts including a string of stolen quad bikes, one of which we traced to Bolton and the theft of pheasant feeders near Bangor and we’re currently investigating badger baiting offences in the Holywell area while we also work with the RSPCA on cruelty cases.

“We use intelligence-led policing and make use of data which we analyse so that we put resources where they’re needed and when they’re needed.”

FUW Meirionnydd county executive officer Huw Jones said: “Investment in tackling rural crime is a great boost for the farming economy and has enhanced the safety of rural and isolated communities.

“Winston Roddick has consulted closely with the farming community and with us in the FUW, and we appreciate the close liaison.

“He has attended livestock markets such as Dolgellau on several occasions, attended FUW meetings and he has listened carefully to our views and taken our concerns on board.

“We congratulate Mr Roddick and his team on their successful strategy to tackle rural crime in North Wales and are hopeful that they will carry on keeping our rural communities safe.”

Sgt Taylor added: “The drop is encouraging, however these are very early days and there is still a lot of hard work ahead for the team and our partner agencies.

“This isn’t a solo effort and we rely so much on our farming unions for their support and also our colleagues at the NRW for their invaluable assistance.

“We have hit the ground running with the new team and we still have a long way to go, however we have a detailed structure and a plan to work to and we are optimistic that this will pay off and reduce crime in our rural communities and increase public confidence.”

North Wales Police’s Rural Crime Team officers can be contacted via the North Wales Police system by dialling 101 or by e-mailing direct to the team Ruralcrimeteam@north-wales.police.uk

Plas Newydd is open for the new season

* Plas Newydd is open to visitors again.

Llangollen’s own stately home is open for a new season.

Details of Plas Newydd’s latest season were given by its manager Kevin Pennington, heritage team leader for Denbighshire County Council which looks after the attraction, at this week's meeting of Llangollen Chamber of Trade and Tourism.

The meeting was held in the small gallery building close to the house, which was once the home of the legendary Ladies of Llangollen.   

He said Plas Newydd was open from April until September 30 and closed only on Tuesdays.

Opening times are 10am until 5pm with last admissions at 4pm.

Entrance fees are £5.50 for adults and £4.50 concessions, with a 10 per cent discount for groups such as coach parties of 15 or more.

Mr Pennington explained that because space inside the house was limited talks on its history are given by guides outside the front entrance leaving people to explore inside at their own pace.

A significant boost to attendance figures had come recently, he said, when parties from cruise ships docking at Liverpool started to be brought over to visit Plas Newydd.

There were also regular groups of visitors from historical societies.

Another feature of Plas Newydd, said Mr Pennington, was the on-site tearoom, which is also open from April-September.

This has 32 covers outside in the courtyard and a further 25 inside and offers a menu including plenty of home-made food.

He told chamber members: “It’s not just about getting people to Plas Newydd but also getting them to return.”

He then invited them to join him on a guided tour of the historic building.